Today, as I rush towards Delhi to catch my flight, I find myself noticing something beautiful along the way.

Everywhere, there are daughters travelling back to their maika. Dressed in their finest, carrying little bags, perhaps some sweets, and that unmistakable excitement of going home.

And suddenly, I realise… today is their day.

Twice a year, around Raksha Bandhan and Bhai Dooj, they make this journey. Back to the house where they grew up. Where someone still calls them by their childhood nickname. Where their arrival is an occasion. Where they are fussed over, fed, pampered, teased and loved.

For a little while, they are not somebody’s wife, mother or daughter-in-law. They are simply someone’s little girl again.

And isn’t that the beauty of festivals? The getting ready, the new clothes, the familiar faces, the laughter around the dining table. The sheer joy of being with your people.

Perhaps that’s why, when our house help says, “Madam, kal Dooj hai, main nahi aaungi,” we don’t need an explanation.

We know. Her maika is waiting. ❤️

Somewhere, a mother is waiting for her daughter to walk through that door. A brother is waiting to tease his sister. A family is waiting to make her feel special.

Festivals, after all, are not just about rituals and traditions. They are about belonging, about relationships, and about knowing that somewhere, there is a home that still waits for you.

May every daughter have a maika that awaits her, arms that welcome her, and a place where she never has to earn her belonging.

Go home, daughters. Be someone’s little girl again. ❤️

— Suvi’s Scribbles